62 center

Student input, new leadership help ‘Judas Iscariot’ impress

COURTESY OF KEITH FOREMAN In The Last Days of Judas Iscariot, witnesses ranging from Sigmund Freud to Pontius Pilate are called to testify on whether Judas Iscariot should go to heaven. 

Last weekend’s theatre department performance of The Last Days of Judas Iscariot, by Stephen Guirgis, was notable not only for its star cast, intelligent humor and philosophical weight, but more so for its unique inclusion of student input in the creative process. 

The show was led by director Shadi Ghaheri, visiting lecturer in theatre, and dramaturg Catherine María Rodríguez, both of whom emphasized the importance of actor participation in their process. The play, which imagines Judas Iscariot on trial in purgatory, was grounded by the exceptional Maya Jasinska ’21 as defense attorney Fabiana Aziza Cunningham, Samori Etienne ’21 as prosecuting attorney El-Fayoumy and Peter Matsumoto ’20.5 in the role of Judas himself. 

For many students, the inclusive rehearsal process had a strong impact on the quality and value of rehearsal time, offering a much-needed change in the wake of the theatre department’s cancellation of Beast Thing in the fall.

Arts

‘Noises Off’ impresses with farcical flare

This past weekend, Cap & Bells put on a production of Noises Off – a famous comedy of errors. Students and community members alike were treated to a three-hour witty, slapstick comedy at the ’62 Center for Theatre and Dance. 

The premise of the show is simple, albeit quite meta: A travelling theatre company is attempting to put on a comedy that focuses on the farcical interactions between numerous people who have all illicitly entered a house they each believe to be empty.

Arts

“Microdramas” pushes boundaries

A series of five short plays under the collective title Microdramas premiered last Thursday in the ’62 Center’s Directing Studio, in a sold-out venue on both Friday and Saturday evenings. The featured plays included The Lesson by Eugene Lonesco – a comedic parable of the dangers inherent in indoctrination; 90 Days by Elizabeth Meriwether, which centers on Elliott, whose girlfriend calls to check up on him; 508 by Amy Herzog, in which two ex-lovers meet in the apartment they once shared; Springtime by Fiona Semi, about the complications of memory; and The Moon Please by Diana Son, in which a young married couple argues over who is going to work and who will stay with their newborn baby on the morning of September 11, 2001.